Our first look at a next-gen electric Volvo sedan and station wagon? Geely's new Zeekr 007 to reportedly to get wagon version as ties between Swedish and Chinese brands deepen

Zeekr, the Chinese electric-only premium cousin of Volvo and Polestar under the same Geely parent company, revealed its 007 sedan at the Guangzhou Auto Show in June this year and now Chinese media is reporting a wagon version is in the works.

It could be our first look at a next-generation replacement for Volvo’s current S60 sedan and V60 station wagon, as the brand has promised it would go all-electric early in Australia by 2026 and its ties with Zeekr deepen.

Speaking to CarsGuide late in 2022 at the launch of the C40, Volvo Australia’s managing director, Stephen Connor, said the brand would not be going SUV-only, proclaiming it would “absolutely” have non-SUV models in its electric-only era.

“We’ve been making a big move toward SUVs in the last few years, now electrification will broaden the range,” he said.

Elaborating, local public relations boss Greg Bosnich said at the time: “There is still demand in Australia for a car like the V60, and if an electric model comes, we’ll be getting it.”

“The wagon is an interesting story. HQ is conscious of that, and I think the emotional connection is still there.”

Zeekr revealed its 007 sedan at the Guangzhou Auto Show in June this year.

While thus far we’ve only had the EX30 and EX90 SUVs confirmed for Australia, an important shift for the brand has been the reveal of the EM90 people mover. It is the first Volvo model to be based on a Zeekr, opening the door for future developments in the same vein. Previously, the Zeekr 001 performance GT car was revealed prior to the Polestar 5 which will be its Swedish equivalent.

This brings us to the Zeekr 007 reveal and talks of a wagon version, which seemingly makes it an ideal basis for a V60 replacement. At 4865mm long, 1900mm wide, and 1450mm high, the sedan is only slightly larger than the current S60/V60 pair, and is the right dimensions to take the fight to popular electric rivals like the BYD Seal and Tesla Model 3.

One of the most important features of the Zeekr 007 is that it debuts the 'PMA2+' platform which moves to an 800-volt architecture as opposed to the 400-volt 'CMA' (Compact Modular Architecture) which currently underpins the Volvo XC40 and Polestar 2. Other benefits of the PMA2+ platform include faster charging, a flat floor and, according to Zeekr, an improved crash structure.

Inside the Zeekr 007 is a 15.1-inch OLED multimedia touchscreen.

The recently revealed sedan version has up to 870km of driving range according to the lenient CLTC testing protocol (or 688km for the standard-range version), a 0-100km/h sprint time of just 2.8 seconds, ultra-rapid fast charging claimed to restore 610km of range in 15 minutes and a trim energy efficiency of 12.5kWh/100km.

On the inside it scores a 15.1-inch OLED multimedia touchscreen and a 35.5-inch augmented reality head-up display, alongside a customisable LED strip at the front and a 462-litre boot capacity. It is primarily rear-wheel drive with a 310kW motor, while an all-wheel drive variant adds 165kW on the front axle.

Volvo’s upcoming EX30 small SUV also launches on Geely’s smaller 'SEA2' platform while the EX90 will sit on the Swedish-led 'SPA2' platform. The brand has promised a new model every year for the next four years. We’ve already seen the EM90 people mover since that announcement, and we can expect a replacement for the ageing XC60 mid-sizer likely with a name-change to EX60, leaving some sort of V60 replacement still on the cards in the coming years.

The recently revealed sedan version has up to 870km of driving range according to the lenient CLTC testing protocol.

Volvo has seen strong sales growth thanks to its XC40 climbing to the top of the premium small SUV sales charts thanks in no small part to the updated electric version, as well as the introduction of its C40 coupe spin-off. The brand told media in late 2022 that its strategy to be electric-only by 2026 will nearly double its sales tally from 12,000 units to 20,000 units a year.